Special report: Tension escalates in Iraq

    CANBERRA, March 21 (Xinhua) -- Australian Prime Minister John Howard on Wednesday reiterated that the Australian troops should stay in Iraq and it would be wrong to set any timetable for withdrawal.

    Howard's statements came amid pressure from Australia's main opposition party, the Labor party, that whether the government has drawn up contingency plans to pull Australian troops from Iraq.

    In a speech to a defense think-tank here marking the fourth anniversary of the commitment of Australian troops to the invasion of Iraq, Howard pleaded for Australians to have patience over the war.

    He warned that U.S. plans to restore security to the country must be given time to work.

    The United States is currently moving a further 20,000 troops into Iraq in a bid to curb the serious sectarian violence in the war-torn country.

    Howard asked Australians to think about the consequences if U.S. and coalition forces withdraw immediately from Iraq.

    "I am not asking Australians to discount the enormous difficulties in Iraq or to change their views about the original decision," Howard said. "I am asking them to consider the situation we now face and the stakes involved."

    "What Iraq and her people need now is time, not a timetable. They seek our patience, not political positioning. They require our resolve, not our retreat," he added.

    He said he believed strongly that to signal departure now would be against Australia's national interest, because failed states could become a launch pad for terror attacks on Western interests.

    Howard has just come back from secret visits to Afghanistan and Iraq, where he visited Australian troops and met with leaders of the two countries.

    Australia, a staunch supporter of the U.S.-led war on terror, currently maintains around 1,400 troops in the Middle East, including 800 based inside Iraq.

    Australia also has about 550 troops operating in south central Afghanistan.